[female first mate] The Lions are locked in the hangar
and the Paladins have been taken to the brig.
Hmm? Hmm.
Mm-hmm.
- What are you doing? - I'm feeling for a secret passage.
You've watched too many movies, Lance. There's no secret passage.
Oh, really? Then how do you explain this?
- [bone cracks] - [Lance whimpering]
I meant, uh, this!
D'ooh, ow, ow, ow! [Whimpering]
- Will someone shut him up? - [whimpers]
[Krolia] There's only one guard patrolling out there.
If we can get this door open, we can overpower him.
[whimpering]
What happened to Coran?
He must have managed to hide when we were captured.
At least we have one ally out there still able to fight for us.
Are you saying our fate rests in Coran's hands?
I will help you look for that passage.
- [pounding] - [Coran grunting]
[grunting continues]
[growls]
Uh-huh. [Strained shouting]
[panting]
Quite the sticky wicket I find myself in, hmm?
Absolutely True Tales of an Incredibly Humble Hero.
Chapter Forty-Three: A Hero's Escape.
I find myself in the cargo hold of the Black Lion,
a strategic and very conscious choice on my part.
It's on me to free my compatriots and save the day.
Luckily, I'm up to the task.
Some men shrink in the face of danger, while others stand up and say...
- [loud clanging] - Ah!
[whimpering]
[squeaking]
Oh!
Hello, little friends. I didn't see you there.
[squeaking]
Oh, uh, just so you know, I didn't scream because I was scared.
That was a shriek of intimidation, by which I mean it would intimidate you.
Uh... [clears throat]
- Well, anyway, I'll get us out. Hmm. - [squeaking]
And then the world will read about us in my memoirs...
Absolutely True Tales of...
Hey, where are you going?
[skittering]
Huh?
Hmm? Huh?
Ah!
Well, I was gonna try that next. You just beat me to it.
Good job, guys.
- [whining] - And where were you this whole time?
I could've really used some help in there.
[squeaking]
- [grunts] Oh, you're hurt. - [whining]
Well, you just sit tight. Old Coran is on the case.
Now you stay here. I'll take care of the enemy combatant.
- [squeaking] - Huh?
[guard grunting]
- [mice chittering] - D'ah!
[groaning]
Whoa!
[Coran shouting]
[doorbell rings]
[groaning]
[mice squeaking]
[doors whoosh shut]
[Zethrid] We've got all the Lions and their Paladins locked down.
If Voltron survived, do you think that means Lotor is still alive?
That's what we're going to find out.
What if he finds us? What do you think he'll do to us?
I will always take care of you, Ezor.
Don't worry, we'll be fine.
- Do you really believe that? - Just look at what we've done already.
We just took down a Galra cruiser.
And we have the mighty Paladins of Voltron locked in our brig.
We are destined for greatness, Ezor. Trust me.
I do.
Now let's go torture some prisoners.
That's my girl.
And then, I heard they was giving away free Kalteneckers with every purchase.
[male pirate] Wait, did you say "free"?
[Coran] Greetings, fellow scallywags. How's the booty?
[pirates] "Booty"?
[Coran] Anyhow, how's... How about capturing those Paladins, eh?
Ha ha.
Remind me where you're... I mean, uh, we're keeping them.
Wait a second.
That's Blofar's scarf!
He stole it from that Valdostian before we flushed him into space.
[Coran] That's right, and I won it from Blofar
in a game of Gorblonthian Checkers.
[male pirate] But Blofar hates Gorblonthian Checkers.
[Coran] Yes, that's right, which is why we used the Melmakian Rule set.
Did you say "the Melmakian Rule set"?
[Coran] Did I? [Coughs]
- What... what I meant to say was... - Who are you?
[grunts] Huh?
Huh? [Grunts]
[grunting]
[pirate groans]
Wait, aren't you one of Lotor's generals?
Acxa.
[door unlocks]
[door whooshes]
Look who's here. It's Voltron.
We're going to have a little talk.
Hey, you're the guys that Lotor shot into space.
And the ones that were trying to kill us.
Yeah, sure, but we're all friends now, right?
I, for one, am glad you survived.
I'm glad you survived, too.
It's no fun torturing a dead person.
Oh. So maybe not?
Where have you been all this time? And what happened to Lotor?
What are you talking about?
We're talking about your little disappearing act.
Answer the question! How did you survive that explosion?
Don't you know? You were there.
I think there's a little confusion about how the...
"we ask questions, you give us answers" scenario works.
Enough of your games. Where is Lotor?
Lotor's dead. We left him in the Quintessence Field.
Yeah, that doesn't really add up. Why aren't you dead?
Because of the power of teamwork?
I'm going to ask you one more time,
and then we're going to have to take a more extreme approach.
The fun part.
[Zethrid] What happened to Lotor and where have you been all this time?
[footsteps]
What are you doing here?
[gasps]
I picked up the signal you were sending to your home planet.
I assume that's how Ezor and Zethrid were able to intercept you.
- But why are you helping us? - We don't have time for that now.
Your friends are being held in a detention cell several floors below us.
We have to find a way to free them, get to your Lions,
and most likely blast our way out.
Well, that'll be a challenge.
The Lions are nearly too weak to fly. They'd be little help in a fight.
So if the entire pirate fleet comes after us?
We'd be right back here or shot into space.
We're gonna need a distraction, not to mention an escape route.
[beeping]
Oh, there's an ion cannon in hangar one, right next to the Lions.
That should work.
In the event of a hull breach, these cruisers are designed
to seal off the other hangars in order to maintain the ship's integrity.
We can use the ion cannon to blast a hole in the hangar door.
The other doors will seal.
So the pirates would only have escape pods to chase after us
until they override the system.
You free your friends and find your helmets and weapons.
Once I blow open the hangar, you and your Lions will be sucked into space.
Right. We'll be ready to go in five doboshes.
If you insist on maintaining this charade of ignorance,
you leave us no choice but to apply pressure.
Finally. Who's our first victim?
[Zethrid] You.
I'd bet half my fleet this group of heroes has a soft spot for the small one.
Don't you touch her!
- [shouts] - [grunts]
[groaning]
[grunting]
[scoffs] Your defiance is adorable and so very misguided.
Leave us alone.
[shouting]
- [Hunk] Pidge! - [Pidge groaning]
Let her go!
[groaning]
[beeping]
[groaning]
[gasping]
[panting]
[intercom beeps]
We've got an intruder in hangar one. Send backup!
[alarm blaring]
[lasers blasting]
[grunting]
[clangs]
Where did I put that helmet?
Huh, just gonna have to do this the old fashioned way.
Ah, hello, there. It looks like your shift is up.
I'm here to replace you.
My shift just started.
[steam hissing]
Who are you? Hey, is that Blofar's scarf?
[sighs] Fine.
I challenge you to a battle of fisticuffs!
[panting, shouting]
[bone cracking]
[screaming]
- [steam hissing] - [Coran whimpers] Easy there, big fella.
Simmer down now. It's just a little scheduling conflict.
- [thuds] - [pirate groans]
- [ion cannon humming] - [gasping]
[electricity crackling]
[Pidge groaning]
Answers!
- [Keith] We told you, he's... - [boom, alarm blaring]
[female computerized voice] Hull breach in hangar one.
Lockdown sequence initiated.
- [Ezor grunts] - [Pidge groans]
This is it.
The next time that door opens, overwhelm the guard.
- [clanging, thudding] - [guard groaning]
[all] Huh?
[squeaking]
- Hello, little friends. - [squeaking]
- What? - [mouse squeaking]
- Where? - Where? What are they saying?
- [squeaking continues] - Coran's trying to rescue us.
And he's got help.
Acxa.
What?
- [blow lands] - [groaning]
[steam hisses]
[Coran groaning]
[sputtering] Joke's on you!
I've got you right where I want you.
[grunting]
[steam hisses]
- [laser zaps] - [groans]
[groaning]
See? You got lucky.
Coran, where's Acxa?
I don't know. Where am I?
Are you okay?
Never better. Now let's get our "belmards" and "hayards."
Don't worry. We got you.
Oh, thank you, Princess Allura.
- [rumbling] - [alarm blaring]
Acxa, what are you doing here?
I should've known you'd show up once we got the Paladins.
She's always been sweet on that one with the flippity hair.
[grunts]
- [Ezor shouting] - [Zethrid] Yah!
[Ezor cries out]
- [Ezor shouts] - [Zethrid grunts]
Hey, how do I look?
- Mm, kinda dumb. - [groans]
Do you think there's a switch on here or something?
[pirate] I cannot wait until that thing turns on and cuts your head off.
[Keith] Our bayards.
They have weapons and we don't. Any suggestions?
Unhand those bayards, you scallywags!
[both] Huh?
- [Coran shouting, muffled] - So much for the element of surprise.
[bayard humming]
- [Keith grunting] - [slicing, thudding]
- [laser zapping] - [blows landing]
[pirates groaning]
Lance, lead the way. Keep the team together.
Wait, where are you going?
Acxa saved our skin. I'm not gonna leave her behind.
I'll meet up with you guys soon.
[whooshes]
[Keith] Let's get to the Lions.
[alarm blaring]
[air whooshing]
- [laser zaps] - [Pidge gasps]
[Lance grunts]
[all grunting]
- [Ezor cries out] - [Keith grunts]
Oh, look, Acxa, it's your favorite Paladin.
So do you guys actually know each other?
Yeah, don't you remember how she never wanted to kill him?
[Zethrid] I guess it is true love.
Can't we just fight? [Grunts]
[pirate] Huh?
[pirates shouting]
[shouting]
- [jet pack sputtering] - [pirate wailing]
Huh? Ha ha! [Growling]
- [loud rumbling] - [pirates shout]
Hmm, must not have wanted any more.
Huh? Huh?
[Lion roars]
[all grunting]
[Zethrid groans]
[Acxa groaning]
[grunting]
[Ezor groaning]
[both groaning]
- Is that what I think it is? - Synthian nitrate.
[Keith] Guys! Zero in on my location and fire on the ship.
Are you sure?
[Keith] Just do it!
- [Acxa grunts] - [Keith shouts]
[Zethrid and Ezor shout]
[explosions]
I just looked at the Lions and they're in worse shape than ever.
We should give them some time to recharge before we head back on our way.
Wow, a lot of things have really changed over the past few weeks.
"Weeks"? What are you talking about?
The last time we saw you. You were fighting us alongside Lotor.
That was three deca-phoebs ago.
No one has seen you since your fight with Lotor.
- That's impossible. - It's true.
After Lotor jettisoned us,
we managed to make it to cover on a meteoroid.
There we saw both Voltron and Lotor disappear.
Eventually Voltron re-emerged... alone.
But then there was an explosion, and after that... nothing.
That was three deca-phoebs ago.
Whoa.
So, as far as everyone else in the universe is concerned,
Voltron has been gone for three deca-phoebs?
That explains the discrepancies in the star charts in our Lions.
I thought they were off because of our inter-dimensional jumping,
which I guess they were, in a way.
Because when you think about it, that must have been the cause of the time slippage
between our experience and that of the rest of the universe.
So how did you end up here, helping us?
Zethrid, Ezor, and I were marooned on the meteoroid for days.
Finally, a Galra ship came to investigate Lotor's last known whereabouts.
We took it over.
With Lotor gone, it was clear that there was a power vacuum in the Galra Empire.
Zethrid and Ezor wanted to exploit that for their own gain...
but I knew I had to find my own path.
And it led me to you.
Thank you... for saving us.
I hope that this makes up, in some way, for the wrong I've done.
I realize now that Lotor wasn't the man I thought he was.
He preached unity, but in the end, he sought only power.
I understand how you feel. I fell for Lotor's lies as well.
I'll do everything I can out here to help the Voltron Coalition.
Wow, so everyone that was helping us thinks we're dead.
Wait.
I haven't been able to get ahold of my dad on Earth or Matt and the Rebels.
What's happened to them in the last three years?
And if Ezor and Zethrid became warlords in that time...
what else has changed?